Nature of the Beast
by Arjent Draconis
Summary: A pair of strange creatures cause serious problems for the SWAT Kats. Meanwhile, Dr. Viper teams up with the Pastmaster in another attempt to turn Megakat City into Megaswamp City, this time using prehistoric beasts! Part 2 of the Shadow Trilogy.
1. A New Beginning

[This is a continuation of my first SWAT Kats fan fic: "Shadow Relm." If you have not done so already, I recommend reading Shadow Relm first, as some characters and story references pertain to that particular fan fic, and not the actual SWAT Kats cartoon (of which I have no affiliation, this is a completely original work based on that cartoon)]

[This story is rated 'M' for violence, gore, and mild sexual content. May not be suitable for younger readers. Sorry kids!]

"On your tail, eight degrees below." Elena's voice came clear over the radio.

"I got 'im." T-Bone rolled the Turbokat sharply left, turning quickly around one of the many large sky scrapers in Megakat city. The smaller jet behind him easily followed the maneuver. He turned right, flying sideways between too buildings. The other jet copied easily. "This guy's good!"

"Too good. Something's not right."

Razor looked at his screen, trying to get a good view of the jet behind them. "I can't see the pilot. Can you see him, Elena?"

Elena stood watching the large monitor, her arms folded across her chest. The monitor image was broken up into twelve smaller images showing varying angles around the Turbokat. It was a new feature that she and Razor had recently completed and installed, and none too soon. She spoke into the small mic on her headphones. "Negative. Hang on a sec." Typing something onto the keyboard, one of the smaller images went static for a moment, then the dimensional image changed to an infrared one. "There isn't one. It's a drone."

"A drone? So then what's controlling that thing?" T-Bone was still trying to shake the smaller jet off his tail, and was quite irritated by his lack of success. Several more laser blasts shot past them, smashing into a nearby building.

Elena was now working at the second keyboard, the smaller screen showing a rapid succession of computer codes. "There's a micro-signal feeding into it. I'm trying to trace the source but there's a scrambler messing up my tracer signal.

"Well, two can play at that game. Launching scrambler missile!" Razor hit the button to reverse-fire the missile behind them. His aim, as usual, was perfect. The drone, which had somehow managed to avoid their previous attempts to shoot it down, was clipped on the wing by the smaller missile. The sudden burst of electricity fried the drone's remote system.

"Got it! Running trace. Wha...? It cut off! I lost it." Elena growled low, hating the fact that the one responsible for the drone and the destruction it had caused had avoided them.

The communication to the drone was shut off only moments after impact from the scrambler missile. The drone went down. T-Bone watched it fall as he flew by. "All right! There it... uh oh." Both SWAT Kats winced as the drone landed right on top of an Enforcer patrol car. The car's occupants managed to jump out just in time before the impact and the following explosion. "It figures."

Razor was a bit curious, however. "It shouldn't have blown up like that, though. Looks more like it self-destructed."

Elena's voiced echoed on the radio. "I was thinking the same thing. Whoever built that thing definitely didn't want to be found out, or risk his technology being copied or recognized."

"Oh well. Guess we better get our tails out of here before Feral yells at us again. I'm sure the Enforcers can handle cleaning up the mess." T-Bone turned the jet around and they headed back to the hanger on the opposite side of the city.

The hanger door opened as the Turbokat approached. T-Bone didn't even have to bother with the remote. Elena had seen their approach and opened the door from the inside controls. The black fighter jet landed smoothly and powered down, coming to gentle stop at the end of the runway, centered on the rotating lift. When the canopy opened, both SWAT Kats jumped easily down and walked over towards the other end of the hanger. Elena stood with her back to them, arms again crossed over her chest, as she watched the large monitor. It no longer showed the images from the Turbokat's new optic system, but rather one large single image, a news broadcast.

Razor removed his helmet and mask, tossing them into his locker. "Sounds like the new remote monitoring system is working great. You having any problems on this end?"

"No." Her tail twitched, she was still irritated as she watched the report.

T-Bone walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning his chin over her shoulder. "Miss me?"

She gave him a quick glance with a smirk, then turned her attention back to the monitor. She smirk faded.

Razor walked over and the three watched Ann Gorra's broadcast.

"As of yet, no sign of a body has been found. However, authorities say that from the heat of the explosion, there's a possibility that there could be nothing left to be found."

"That's because there _wasn't _one." Elena's tail lashed again, inadvertently hitting T-Bone on the leg.

Commander Feral then came on the screen, Ann holding her microphone up to him. "If those meddling SWAT Kats hadn't gotten in the way, this disaster might have been avoided!"

"That guy _really _doesn't like you two, does he?"

They both answered simultaneously. "Nope!"

T-Bone let go of Elena as she stepped forward, back to the keyboard. She hit a button and muted the sound, then typed in a few commands. The image zoomed in on the wreckage behind Feral and Ann. Elena stared at the screen for a moment. "Jake, does that thing look familiar to you?"

The ginger-furred kat took a few steps closer and looked at the monitor. "What, exactly?"

"That!" She zoomed in closer.

Jake looked at a small piece of mangled electronic equipment. It took a moment, then he finally realized what it was. "That's a microneural processor! Pumadyne was developing it for M.A.S.A.'s unmanned space probes!"

T-Bone looked a bit confused at this. "Woah. So you're saying that whoever this guy is, he could control that thing just by _thinking _about what to do?"

Elena nodded. "Yes. And the drone reacted with the same speed as the guy's thought process. Somehow, it's control system was wired directly into his neural transmitters."

"His what?"

Jake smirked. "His brain, Chance. This thing was plugged in right into it's controller's brain."

"Ech. So, exactly how many criminals do we know who'd want to pull something like that?"

Elena looked to Jake, also wanting to know the answer to that.

"Hard Drive's a good possibility. Or the Metallikats."

"Yeah, but didn't you destroy them?"

T-Bone finally removed his helmet and mask, walking over the pair of lockers. "Yeah, but they're like big metal cockroaches."

"Heh. Yep. We can never seem to completely get rid of them."

"Hmm..." Elena sat back down in front of the keyboard and began running background info on the aforementioned criminals, as well as Pumadyne and it's recent research programs. The guys meanwhile changed out of their flight suits and back into their work clothes. She didn't even notice.

Jake climbed the ladder back up to the garage above. Chance was about to follow when he looked back towards Elena. "You coming?"

"In a bit." She was still working at her large custom-built computer system. Fifty years trapped in a Medieval world did nothing to hinder her computer, electronic, or mechanical skills

Chance shrugged and continued up the ladder, closing the hatch door behind him. "Man, Jake. I think she's worse than you are!"

Jake laughed. "Hey, she's _your _girlfriend!"

Back upstairs, Chance and Jake relaxed on their sofa. A Scaredy Kat cartoon was playing on the small TV set. The familiar sound of a car drew their attention to the window. "I had a feeling she'd be here soon for repairs." Chance stood up and finished off the last few gulps of his milk, then tossed the can into the waste bin. He then headed down the stairs of the apartment, into the garage below. Jake followed him, still holding his half-full can.

The green sedan pulled up in front of the garage, the driver side door opening. Chance walked around the car to inspect the damage to it's right rear side. Jake set down his can on a workbench, then walked over to the driver's door as the she-kat steps out, dressed in her usual pink business attire. "Good afternoon, Miss Briggs. What happened to your car?"

The blond kat smiled at the mechanic. "Hey, Jake. Didn't you guys see the news recently?"

Chance looked over from where he stood near the back of the car. "You mean that small jet that was trashing downtown?" Of course they both knew that's what happened. They were there, in their own jet.

"Yeah, that's it. I was lucky, though. The car in front of me was completely totaled. The driver had to be sent to the hospital."

Jake looked a bit worried. "Were_ you _hurt?"

"No, but thanks for your concern. So, can you guys repair my car?"

Chance walked back around to join them. "No problem. Shouldn't take more than a day or so at most."

"Wonderful. The Mayor's sending a limo to pick me up. It should be here soon. Hey, who's bike is that?"

Jake and Chance followed Callie's gaze into the garage. The silver motorcycle was still being built, but was starting to come together nicely. Jake just glanced over to Chance, leaving him to explain. "Oh! Uh, that's a friend's. We're helping her put it together."

Callie raised an eyebrow. "'Her'?"

"Uh, yeah."

Jake gave a small chuckle that caused Chance to blush just ever so slightly.

Callie smiled, clearly amused. "Chance, do you have a girlfriend?"

Before he could answer, a soft laugh echoed from inside the garage. A she-kat with light chocolate fur and sooty-black hair walked out of the shadows from inside the garage. She wore dark blue-jeans and a black sleeveless tank-top that revealed a dragon tattoo on her upper right arm. The she-kat was well built with a lithe body and toned muscles, the look of an athlete. She also had a pair of small blood-red braids in front of each ear, the ears themselves having silver earrings in them. She reminded Callie a bit of Lt Felina Feral in her build, but with far more grace in her movements.

"You must be Miss Calico Briggs?"

"Oh! Uh, yes. How did you know that?" She realized that was a bit of a stupid question. Who _didn't_ know who she was in this city?

Elena smiled and cast a slight glance to Jake. "Oh, I've heard a bit about you."

Now it was Jake's turn to blush. "Um, we'll go ahead and get started on your car, Cal...uh.. Miss Briggs."

Callie smiled sweetly and handed Jake her keys, stepping back away from the car as he got in. Jake drove the car into the garage, followed behind by Chance.

Elena leaned against the wall, watching them a moment before Callie asked another question. She turned her attention back to the blond she-kat.

"So, who are you, anyways? You look like you could be an Enforcer?"

"I'm not from here actually. Former military. Can't say where, though."

"Can't? Or won't?"

"_Can't_". The tone of Elena's voice showed that she meant it. It wasn't threatening, just an 'and that's all I can say about it, end of subject' tone.

"Oh. Well, could you at least tell me your name?"

She smiled, a soft shine in her emerald eyes. "Elena Kougré"

"Nice to meet you, Elena. And please, call me 'Callie'. So, how long have you been seeing Chance?"

Elena actually had to pause and think. It seemed like much longer than it really was. "I've known him about two months now, I think."

Before they could say anything else, a white stretched limo pulled up nearby. "Oh, that's my ride. I'm glad to have met you, Elena. Bye guys!" She waved to Chance and Jake inside the garage, then got into the limo.

As the limo pulled off, Elena walked back inside the garage and over to her motorcycle. She knelt down, picking up a wrench from the small toolbox beside it.

Chance looked over to her. "Just _had_ to go and do that, didn't you?"

She didn't even glance back as she starting working on the bike she was building. "Yep!"


	2. Terror Downtown

The alley was dark. The street lamps were too far away to pierce the deep shadows. Two pairs of eyes glowed red in the darkness. A few yards into the alley, a homeless kat slept curled up inside a cardboard box. The two creatures hissed and moved forward. Their long ears twitched, picking up the sound of the kat's breathing. Their nostrils flared, catching his scent. Long fangs dripped saliva as sharp claws clicked on the pavement.

Something caused the kat to stir. A blast of hot, putrid air hit him in the face. Groggily, he opened his eyes, just in time to see the two beasts lunge at him. He didn't even have time to scream.

The streets were empty this late at night. No-one heard the sounds of growling coming from the alley. No-one heard the sound of the tearing of flesh or the crunching of bone. In only a few minutes, there was nothing left of the kat save for a large bloody smear on the concrete and shredded scraps of blood-soaked clothing.

A beam of sunlight pierced a small hole in the ragged curtains, hitting Jake in his eyes. He groaned and rolled over. Opening his eyes, he looked at the clock. 7:23 am. Slowly, he sat up and shifted onto the edge of the bed. The slim kat stretched a moment, then got up, got dressed, and walked out of his room.

Downstairs in the garage, Jake could hear the sound of a power-drill. He knew it was Elena. Most kats needed an average of eight hours sleep. Elena needed only four. She attributed this to the Astral Stone.

He glanced around the living room. Since Elena came into their lives, the place seemed a bit cleaner than it used to be. More well kept. He didn't see Chance anywhere, but that wasn't unusual. The big tabby was prone to sleeping in.

Jake walked over to the fridge and opened the top door to the freezer. Pulling out the box of frozen sausage & egg breakfast wraps, he took one out and tossed the box back into the freezer. Closing the door, he unwrapped it while walking to the microwave oven. Jake placed the breakfast wrap on a plate, put it in, and set the timer to 2 minutes.

Below, the sound of the drill stopped. The ginger cat slumped down into a chair at the small table, waiting for his breakfast to warm up. The door to the other bedroom opened and Chance walked out. He had thrown on a pair of pants but hadn't bothered putting on a shirt yet.

"Morning. Didn't expect you up for another.."

"Where's Elena?"

Jake knew that tone in his friend's voice. "What's wrong?"

"That stone's glowing. Woke me up."

"She's downstairs."

Chance walked over to the stairs and leaned on the railing. "Elena!"

"I know!"

She was already halfway up the stairs. Chance had to jump back out of the way to avoid her running into him. She ran into the bedroom.

Jake watched her. "Hey, what's going on?"

A moment later, Elena walked back out, holding the Astral Stone in her hands. It's red and blue bands were creating a pulsating, violet glow.

The smaller tom's ears went back. "That can't be a good sign."

"Something's wrong. There's an essence, one that doesn't belong in this world."

Chance folded his arms over his bare chest. "From another world? The Shadow Relm?"

She nodded, her emerald eyes dark. "I think so." The two colors of the stone began to glow independantly, creating a soft continual light that alternated between red and blue. Elena closed her eyes, concentrating on the Stone's power.

A soft "ding" from the microwave was the only thing that broke the silence. Jake ignored his breakfast for the moment, watching Elena.

After several long moments, she finally opened her eyes with a sigh. The glowing stopped. She looked up at them and shook her head.

"All I'm seeing are flashed of red. Blood. Recent. But nothing else. It's almost as if I'm being blocked. I don't understand how that could be possible, though."

"Well, maybe there's something in the news." Jake got up and retrieved his breakfast from the microwave.

Chance walked over to the fridge and pulled out three cans of milk, one at a time. The first he threw to Elena, the second to Jake.

Elena caught the can in one hand, placing the Stone's golden chain around her neck with the other. Chance and Jake sat down on the couch while Elena leaned against the wall beside it. Chance picked up the remote and turned on the TV, switching to the news channel. They didn't see anything unusual.

Disheartened, Elena moved back towards the stairs. "I'm going to go check the computers." She then proceeded down the stairs, into the back room of the garage. From there she opened the secret hatch in the floor and climbed down the ladder.

Several minutes later, the guys heard her yelling faintly from below.

"Chance! Jake! Get down here!"

Setting their cans of milk, and Jake's plate of half-eaten breakfast, on the small coffee table, the two ran quickly downstairs, then down into the hanger below. Elena was sitting at her computer. The large monitor showed crime scene photos dated from 4:04 am thru 4:47 am that morning. Jake and Chance didn't even notice the time, stamps. They were staring at the photos themselves. Jake felt sick to his stomach and had to turn away, fighting to hold down his food. Elena explained.

"I hacked into the Enforcer crime report data base. These were taken only a few hours ago. The main report is still being written up."

Chance grimaced as he looked at the grisly photos. "Where is this?"

"Downtown. Off of Lionne Ave."

The photos showed a small alleyway. Bits of bone, flesh and viscera lay scattered among shredded clothing in a large mass of drying blood. The entire area of splatter was as wide as the alley and about thirteen feet in length.

Jake gulped, still fighting the sickness in his gut, and looked back at the photos. "What kind of person could do something like this?"

"It wasn't a 'who', Jake. But a 'what'. Felynthropes." Her voice was low and cold.

Chance looked at her in surprise. "You know what did this?"

She nodded gravely. "I've seen it before, back in the Shadow Relm. Once they were kats, but they became beasts. They live only to kill."

"How do we stop it?"

"I'm not sure. There are many different stories and legends about felynthropes, but I'm not sure which are real and which are just kitten's tales. One thing that most seem to have in common though is silver. Supposedly it harms them more strongly than anything else. Many stories claim that they're fast healers, some that they can't even be wounded at all. Except by silver. But then, there's a slight difference in the Shadow Relm and here."

"Yeah, our weaponry's a Hell of a lot better! Right, buddy? Jake? You okay?"

The smaller kat was leaning against the wall nearby, his head down. He didn't look too good. It wasn't so much the gore in the photos themselves that bothered him. It was the memories they brought back. Memories from a little over a month ago, back in the Shadow Relm. He saw the battlefield in his mind again. The dead and dying everywhere, the grass soaked in the blood of countless kats and koblins. He groaned. "Yeah, I'll be okay. I just need some air." He carefully walked back to the ladder and climbed back up to the garage above. Chance and Elena watched him go, both with worried expressions on their faces.

An hour later, Jake was finally feeling a bit better. He and Chance had resumed working on Callie's car while Elena continued searching through the Enforcer records, checking for updated reports of the crime scene. She was certain it was a felynthrope. But why couldn't she sense it? Why couldn't the Stone's power help her find it? And, more importantly, where the heck did it come from?

Callie's wasn't the only care damaged the previous day. Chance and Jake spent the vast majority of their time in the garage, and Elena helped out for most it. Thankfully there were no emergencies that required them this time. The day passed relatively smoothly.

By 7:30, they decided to finally call it a night. Chance stood up and stretched his back. "Y'know, I sure miss that healing spring of your's Elena."

"Yeah, there are times I really miss it too. Like after the other night." She gave Chance a playful smile that made the big tabby grin sheepishly. They were down in the hanger, not wanting to risk waking up Jake. The cement floor however was not very comfortable, and in fact left them both quite sore.

Jake looked up sharply at both of them, then just shook his head and walked up the stairs to the apartment above. There were some things he really just did _not _want to know.

At around 9:14, the alarm sounded. Chance and Jake ran over to the control panel, the faster Jake getting there first, and hit the button. "Yes, Miss Briggs?"

"Guys! We've got a situation downtown! There was a scream in an alley not too far away. Now the Enforcers are chasing this weird creature, but it's doing a LOT of damage! They can't stop it and several have already been severely injured!"

Elena jumped off the couch and flew downstairs towards the hanger.

Chance saw how fast she moved and knew something was very wrong. "We're on our way!"

The two ran downstairs after the she-kat. They quickly changed into their flight suits while Elena worked furiously at her computers, pulling up every bit of information she could. She brought up a system of security camera shots from various angels on the larger screen. Nine divided images appeared on the screen. They were security camera images from various locations around the city, set in nine-camera grids. She rapidly flipped through the images until she finally found a set showing the scene downtown. "There!"

T-Bone and Razor ran over and looked at the screen where she pointed. The image in the bottom left corner showed the Enforcers firing on a large kat-like beast with massive claws, long ears, and a thick tail. It was splattered in blood, obviously not it's own. Most of their laser fire missed the creature, but what did hit didn't even seem to have any effect. They watched as it lunged forward, landing onto the nearest Enforcer. The kat screamed as the beast's claws ripped right through his flack jacket, disemboweling him on the spot. Another swipe of the creature's claws, and his throat was torn open. He was dead.

Not wasting another moment, the SWAT Kats turned and ran to their jet, leaping up into the cockpit. Elena was already at the controls. The lift rotated and lowered. She put on her headset and switched on the radio com. "Be careful, guys!"

With Elena working the controls from inside the hanger, the SWAT Kats found they were able to get underway at least 2.7 minutes faster now. And when it came to the sort of situations they had to deal with, every minute counted. T-Bone threw the power lever forward. The engines flared to life and the jet took off down the underground runway, then out of the large hanger door, flying quickly into the sky towards Megakat City.


	3. Impossible Odds

I didn't take long to find the source of the battle. Several Enforcer choppers hovered above, firing at the strange beast below them. 

T-Bone switched the radio to the Enforcer's channel. "It looks like you've got a serious problem there, Commander. I'd recommend pulling your ground units back."  
There was a pause, then they heard Feral's voice. "What are you two Hot Shots doing here?" That was a stupid question. They _always _managed to show up when there was serious trouble. 

"We're _here_, Commander, to help stop that thing from taking any more lives!" 

Another pause. Feral hated the SWAT Kats, but he knew they had a point. This creature was unlike anything the Enforcers had faced before. They had already suffered far too many casualties. "Fine." 

He gave the order and the Enforcers began to pull back. The beast was relentless though. It lunged at a fleeing officer, ripping into his back and tossing aside the shredded flack jacket like nothing. 

T-Bone angled the jet down. The Turbokat dove straight at the creature. Razor fired an octopus missile. It slammed directly into the felynthrope, throwing it backwards off the kat. Too late though, the kat was already dead. 

The beast slammed full force from the missile into the wall of a building, creating a large whole in the mortar. It gave a fierce scream and grabbed two of the missile's 'arms'. Razor stared at his monitor in disbelief as the beast pulled on the arms, ripping the steel connectors apart. It tossed the missile aside and looked up at the jet as it flew by, snarling viciously. 

T-Bone pulled up and looped around a group of buildings, circling back. "It can't _possibly _be that strong?" 

"Normally, no. This one has a very strong magical presence to it." Elena's voice was grave. 

"Great. Any ideas?" 

"I hate to say it, but you might consider explosives." 

"Alright... Locking on." Razor lowered his visor and locked in the targeting radar on the beast. T-Bone lined the jet up again. The creature stared up at them, poised to jump. 

"Stay above at least fifteen yards!" 

T-Bone pulled the jet back up a few more yards. "It can jump that high?" 

"With magic involved, best not to take the chance. I'm feeing a _very _strong power controlling this thing. Whatever was blocking me this morning is hitting full force now! I'm not even wearing the stone and I can feel it!" 

Razor obtained a lock. "Firing Blowtorch missiles!" 

Three missiles fired in rapid succession. The beast jumped as they hit, but was lost in the explosion. A nearby car, thankfully abandoned, was thrown forty feet and a fair-sized hole was blown into the concrete. 

The beast stood up on all fours, shaking off soot and debris. Several small tendrils of smoke came from it's fur but it appeared otherwise unharmed. It looked back up at them and screamed, it's eyes glowing a bright red. 

"NO WAY?" 

There was a moment's pause on the com, then Elena's voice came on softly. "We've got a serious problem." 

"No shit. Any more ideas, darlin'?" The large tabby turned the jet again, having to loop the Turbokat around several more buildings to circle back yet again. 

Razor looked at his control panel. "What about electricity?" 

Another pause. "Try it. Electricity is energy. That would be a good possibility against magic." 

The creature watched as they came down again. This time, however, it turned and ran into a nearby alley. 

"Aw crud!" 

"It knows." 

"What do you mean 'It knows'?" 

"As I said, something, or someone, is controlling this beast. Electricity is going to be our best bet." 

T-Bone pulled the jet up over the buildings, using the thrusters to bring it to a hover over the alley. "I can't see it?" 

Razor switched on the dimensional radar while Elena turned her optical sensors onto infrared. 

Razor's ears went back. "I can't find it." 

"I can." Yet another pause as she checked her infrared sensors in various directions. "Found it! It cut through the building to your left. Next alley over! Try trapping it with the tarpedo, then fry it!" 

Razor switched quickly back to his targeting system and loaded the tarpedo as T-Bone maneuvered the jet over to the next alleyway to their left. Sure enough, the creature was there, running swiftly through the alley. It was almost out of it when the Turbokat lowered down into the street, right in front of the beast. 

"Launched!" The tarpedo fired, slamming full force onto the felynthrope, throwing it back several yards and covering it in a thick black sludge. 

"Bingo!" 

T-Bone watched the creature through the front of the cockpit. "Uh oh. Hurry up, buddy! That thing's already working itself loose!" 

"Hang on. Target lock...Deploy!" 

The scrambler missile fired. The felynthrope had no chance to evade, still partially trapped in the sticky tar. It screamed, a blood-curtling sound, as the missile hit and released a powerful burst of electricity. It then lay motionless. 

"YES! You got it!" 

"I'm not so sure." Elena's voice was still very soft and grim. 

"Elena, that thing's toast. It's not... Oh crud." 

The tabby starred in disbelief as the creature moved, slowly trying to get back up. 

His partner likewise couldn't believe it. "Uh, any more ideas?" Quiet. "Elena?" 

"Slicer missile." 

"I... I can't..." 

"You _have _to!" 

T-Bone glanced back over his shoulder. "We have to stop that thing, partner. It's taken too many lives already." 

Razor loaded the missile, then hesitated. 

T-Bone looked back at the thing. "Elena, what about the megalaser?" 

"No. The Enforcers fired every laser they had at it. Nothing. We're gonna have to go with cold steel. Fire the missile, Razor." 

The felynthrope had now gotten shakily back to it's paws and was almost free of the tar. 

Razor hit the 'launch' button. The missile fired, opening it's four long blades, designed for cutting through metal, not flesh. Razor knew they had to kill the thing. He was fully prepared for that. But he was not prepared for the massive bloodshed he knew was going to happen as soon as the missile hit. It did. The large blades cleaved straight through the felynthrope, ripping it apart in a virtual explosion of blood and fur. Razor closed his eyes. 

"Good job, buddy." 

The Turbokat lifted back into the air and the main engines kicked back on. T-Bone got onto the radio on the Enforcer's channel. "Commander, it's been taken down."  
There was no answer. He didn't really expect one anyways. They heard Feral shouting commands to his Enforcers, telling them to secure the area.  
Unnoticed by the Enforcers or the SWAT Kats, a hooded figure stood in the shadows atop a nearby building. The figure looked down at the scene below. A dark light glittered in his crimson eyes, veiled beneath the black hood. Turning, the form vanished back into the shadows. 

The Astral Stone flared with a violet brilliance. The problem was that it was sitting on the dresser upstairs in the bedroom. Elena watched the monitor as the SWAT Kats finally managed to take down the felynthrope. She sighed, a heavy burden seeming to have been lifted from her. Suddenly, her ears pricked. A strong feeling caused the fur on the back of her neck to stand on edge. A faint clicking sound echoed behind her at the other end of the hanger. Instinct took over and Elena lept to her paws, spinning to face the sound. She saw nothing. But she knew something was there, She _felt _it. 

"Where are you?" 

"Huh?" T-Bone's voice came over the com in her headphone. 

Razor was also confused. "Did the optic sensors go out?" 

She ignored them. Her breathing was hard. Her ears twitched, listening. A pair of crimson eyes then glowed in the shadows nearby. Elena's emerald eyed narrowed. A slight tremor ran through her right hand as she prepared her magic. She wasn't wearing the Astral Stone, so her magic was severely lessened, but she hoped it would still be enough. Then, the beast lunged. Elena lept aside as it crashed into the chair behind her, then slammed into the base of the computer console, thankfully not damaging the computer itself. 

The guys heard the crash. "Elena! What's going on?" 

"We've got company!" She then jerked off the headset and tossed it aside. 

T-Bone and Razor heard the soft 'thump' as it hit the ground. "ELENA!" 

The creature lunged again. Elena jerked her arm forward, pulling the Shadow Cloak about herself. The beast hit the ground where she had been, it's claws cutting deep grooves in the cement. It spun around, it's eyes glowing red. 

"C'mon, you pathetic waste of fur!" 

A shimmer, and Elena stood a few yards away, facing the felynthrope. The magic cloak covered her in a black body suit. Only her head, hands, tail and paws were exposed. In her hands she held a spear, it's shaft gleaming black like polished obsidian. The spear's razor-sharp tip shone brightly in the light. 

The beast hissed at her. She hissed back. It lunged, and this time Elena didn't jump out of the way. She lept forward, then dove at the last second, rolling on the ground as the beast flew just inches over her head. She twisted, bringing the end of the spear up, slashing a deep gash in it's leg. It screamed out in pain and rage. Turing the instant it hit the ground, it lunged again, lower this time. Elena dodged, but the creature's claws slashed across her left side. She hissed from the pain, her ears pinned back.  
The creature spun to face her again. It took a few steps back, then licked it's claws, tasting her blood. It had a look of sadistic pleasure in it's toothy grin. 

Elena was breathing hard. The wounds in her side were deep She knew that if this kept up much longer she'd end up loosing a considerable amount of blood from it. The beast stalked in a circle around her, it's tail lashing. Elena turned slowly, continuing to face it as it circled, gripping the spear. 

Finally, the creature lunged again. Elena spun to the side. Her wound, however, had slowed her down. The beast's jaws clamped down hard on her right forearm. She yelled out in pain, but was still able to keep her wits and she dropped onto her back to the ground, using the creature's own momentum to flip it. It flew back, it's sharp fangs tearing into her arm as they were pulled away. Elena flipped back up onto her paws, spinning around to face the beast again as it likewise got back up. 

With a scream of rage, it threw itself at the she-kat. Elena lunged forward with the spear. The two collided, the force of their impact driving the spear deep into the creature's chest, piercing straight through out of the back. The larger, stronger beast threw Elena down, pinning her under it's weight. It spasmed, then it's body went limp. Lifeless. It was now dead, but she had to push the creature off of her. The magic spear disintegrated into a black mist then vanished. 

Elena got up slowly. She was dizzy. The wounds were deep, and she was bleeding out. The had to stop the bleeding, fast. 

T-Bone had to hit the remote to open the hanger doors. There was still no response from Elena. His heart was pounding. He and Razor had heard the sounds of the fight through the radio com in Elena's discarded headset. Heard her scream out in pain. The Turbokat shot down the runway fast. He powered it down and opened full flaps, slamming the breaks on hard. The jet skidded, and barely managed not to hit the walls as they finally came out of the tunnel and stopped onto the lift platform. 

Normally, Razor would have made a comment about his partner's sudden recklessness, but he knew the reason for it. Razor was also worried. Elena was a close friend to him as well. And the sudden silence after the fight frightened them both. 

T-Bone had opened the canopy and jumped down out of the jet before the lift was even fully up and locked into place. "Elena!" 

Razor was about to jump down out of the jet as well, but the sight froze him in place. There were several places in the floor were heavy claws had slashed right into the cement. Blood was splattered everywhere, and there were several places where it pooled, the edges of the pools smeared with bloody paw prints. Toward the other side of the hangar, near the ladder that led up to the garage above, was the form of another felynthrope. It lay motionless in a large pool of dark blood. 

T-Bone yelled again. "ELENA!" There was no sign of the she-kat. 

"Elena?" Razor finally jumped down out of the jet, and cautiously walked over to the lifeless form of the felynthrope. "Chance, there's... There's too much blood in here for it all to have come from this thing." 

The tabby's heart sank. He felt a tight knot form deep in his stomach. She couldn't have been dead. She's survived for so long, against so many odds. He had almost lost her before, a month ago. She was so very near death. But she survived. She had to still be alive. She _had _to be! 

They then heard a soft groan. "Elena?" Chance ran over towards the sound, tossing his flight helmet and mask aside onto the ground as his did. Near the ladder, her body partially hidden behind some machinery, was Elena. She lay on her stomach in a pool of blood. _Her _blood. "Elena?" 

Chance kneeled down and very gently turned her over, supporting her head on his left forearm. She no longer wore the Shadow Cloak, and he could plainly see the deep gashed on her arm and side. Her skin was pale and cold. She didn't open her eyes. 

"Elena?" 

Jake walked over, pulling off his mask. He held the black cloth in his hand. "Is she...?" 

"Not yet. Jake... we've got to do something..." 

Jake just stared, the horrible memories of the war once again flooding his mind. 

"JAKE!" 

The smaller kat snapped out of his daze. He kneeled down on the other side of Elena, looking the wounds over carefully. "She's bleeding out. We've got to.." 

"Th... own..." 

Elena's voice was extremely soft. They could barely make out her words. 

Tears rolled won Chance's face. She was still with them. For the moment. "Elena? What...?" 

"The Stone..." Her voice was just a bit stronger, but only because she forced it. It was taking every bit of strength she had left. "Get... the Stone..." 

Jake immediately lept to his paws and was up the ladder in an instant. He ran upstairs as fast as he could into the bedroom Chance and Elena shared. The Stone was a dark color. The red and blue bands had faded almost to black. 

"Not again!" The last time he had seen the stone turn black, Elena was dying of poison. Were it not for the Turbokat's speed in returning her to the encampment, and the witches' powerful magic, she would never have survived. It took a full day for her to wake up, and several more to completely regain her strength. 

He grabbed the stone, it's touch as cold as ice on his hands. Turning, he part ran, part jumped back down the stairs, then back down into the hanger below. 

"I've got it!" 

Gently, he placed the pendant in Elena's open hand. As she closed her fist around it, it glowed brightly. First red, then violet, then to a steady soft blue. Elena let out a slow breath, then her body went completely limp.


	4. Unexpected Problems

The Stone's power had stopped the bleeding and partially healed the wounds. It had also kept Elena alive. She was still very weak, but alive. What the stone hadn't done, was regenerate the large amount of blood she had lost. The stone was still very dark, the two colors difficult to distinguish from each other. 

Jake and Chance cleaned up the blood as best they could, then bandaged her wounds. They hadn't returned back down to the hangar since bringing Elena up to the apartment above it. They knew that soon they would have to clean up the large amount of blood down there. Worse, they would have to do something with the felynthrope's body. But not yet. They didn't want anything to do with the thing until Elena woke up. 

Jake finally went to bed sometime after 1 am. Chance eventually fell asleep as well, laying on his bed next to the still unconscious she-kat. 

When Chance awoke the next morning, he hadn't slept very well at all, he was relieved to see that she was not only alive, but also conscious. Barely. She was still very pale, and probably would remain this way for several days. He was almost tempted to actually take her to the hospital. She certainly needed it. 

Chance sat up and had to wipe away a small tear, hoping she didn't see it. 

"Elena? How are you feeling?" 

"Tired..." Her voice was soft, weak. Her eyes were dull and partially closed. 

"Where did those... those _things _come from? How did that one get in here?" 

She spoke softly through ragged breaths. "They're from... the Shadow Relm. A portal... somehow... Strong magic..." 

"But how did it get in _here_?" 

"It was... sent here..." 

"What?" 

"Sometimes... evil sorcerers... will create... felynthropes... as assassins." 

"Assassins? You mean... it was after us?" 

"No... It was... after _me_..." 

Chance clenched his fists. Bad enough someone could try to kill him and Jake. After all, the _were _the SWAT Kats, though he would give his life to protect his partner. But for someone to come after the she-kat he loved... Knowing where she was... Luring him and Jake away by having the other felynthrope attacking at the other end of the city... It was just too much for him. His palms began to bleed as his claws dug into his own skin. 

"Chance...?" 

He opened his eyes and looked down at her. Worry shown in those beautiful emerald eyes. Gently, she placed a hand on his clenched fist. Chance looked down and saw the blood dripping onto the bed beside her. He calmed down, unclenched his fists. 

"I'm sorry, Elena." 

"No... there wasn't... anything... you could do..." 

She turned her eyes towards the door. Chance followed her gaze. 

Jake was standing in the doorway, leaning on the frame. His expression was grim. He'd obviously heard the conversation, and was more adpt at putting information together than as was his friend. 

"If those things were from the Shadow Relm, why would they have been sent to _this _world to kill you? What would someone _there _gain from it?"  
Elena could only think of one possibility. "Revenge..." 

"But who? Shade Kat's dead? Isn't he?" A sudden thought occurred to the ginger kat. Shade Kat was a sorcerer. The chosen of the Sun Talisman. Jake had seen magic bring Elena back from death, thrice now in such a short time. What if Shade Kat _was _still alive? 

"He... should be..." She had the same thought. She knew the power of magic. Knew the power of sorcerers. She knew the head had to be removed, or there _was _a chance they could come back. She'd killed Shade Kat. Ran him through the with her sword, and threw him off a balcony from one of the highest towers of his citadel. She saw him hit the stone ground far below. But there was still a chance... a small chance... that he could have survived it. 

"The body... did they... ever find... the body...?" 

She couldn't remember. Birman had never told her if they did or not. Neither did Mau. She couldn't remember anyone saying if they'd found Shade Kat's body, or what was done with it if they did. 

"I... I don't know." 

Jake looked to Chance. Maybe he knew. 

The tabby shrugged. "I don't remember anyone saying anything about if the body was found or not. But if it wasn't, surely Birman or Mau would have said something?" 

"Yes... " She knew that was true. One of them surely would have told her if they body had not been found. "They would have..." 

Elena stayed in bed for two full days and nights. She had told them to burn the body of the Felynthrope. They ended up having for divide most of their time between their jobs in the garage, repairing several cars damaged by the drone jet a few days ago, and cleaning the large amount of blood from the hanger.  
On the second day, another drone jet had appeared. The SWAT Kats managed to defeat it, but without Elena's help they had taken damage to the Turbokat, and were still no closer to figuring out who was controlling it. 

The morning of the third day after the attack, Chance awoke to find that he was alone in bed. "Elena?" 

Chance got up, pulled on a pair of cargo pants, and walked out into the main living area. Elena was sitting at the table, eating a breakfast wrap, a glass of water on the table beside her. Chance smiled and walked over to her. "Glad to see you're feeling better." 

"Yeah. Thankfully I still heal fairly fast. A side affect from not aging, I think." 

"Or the magic." 

She smirked. "The magic's the _reason _I didn't age." 

Something then occurred to the big tabby. "If you're still healing fast, does that mean you're still not aging?" 

She had to pause and think about that one. "I honestly don't know. From what I've heard from Mau, the chosen ones of the Moon and Sun talismans don't age, until the talismans are combined into the Astral Stone. Supposedly, the keeper of the Stone then begins aging again, but more slowly." 

"How slowly?" 

"He said one kat lived to about three hundred, but I think they can _choose _the speed at which they age." 

Chance paled. He realized that she could potentially age slower than, and drastically outlive, him. 

Elena obviously knew what he was thinking. "In our line of 'work', I doubt any of us would live too long. And, to be honest, I don't _want _to live that long." She had already seen nearly eighty years, even though she still appeared to be in her late twenties. She certainly did not want to see another hundred or more years. 

"That's _not _very comforting." But he knew it was also true. For him, Jake, _and _Elena. Every time he and Jake went out as the SWAT Kats, there was the possibility that they would never come back. And he knew that Elena wouldn't stay cooped up in the hanger forever. She and Jake had already started drawing up plans to rebuild her SilverHawk. 

Elena took another bite of her breakfast and decided to change the subject. "Have there been any more incidents while I was out of it?" 

Chance decided he was hungry too, and went to grab a bowl and some cereal. "Yeah, another drone showed up yesterday." 

"Another one? Same kind?" 

"Identical. Same machine, same moves, same lightning quick reactions." 

She could hear the frustration in his voice. "And...?" 

He sighed as he set down the bowl and cereal box on the table. "And, we took it down. But it did some serious damage. Both to the city... and to the jet." 

Elena winced. She knew that heavy combat weaponry, such as fighter jets, often took damage. But still, pilots didn't like to see their jets get damaged. She had been the same way with her SilverHawk. But in a way, part of her old jet was still around, since it had been used to rebuild the Turbokat back in the Shadow Relm. One of the Turbokat's current engines was in fact one of the SilverHawk's two main engines, as was the front rotary thruster and the landing gear. 

"How bad is it?" 

''Gonna take a few days to repair." 

"Not good. Let's just hope no more of those things show up in the meantime." 

Chance and Jake spent most of the day working on the Turbokat, the rest of it working on still more damaged cars in the garage. Sometimes they wondered if they were _too _good at their job as mechanics, as it could make their 'other' job a bit more difficult time-wise. 

Elena finally removed her bandages to find that her wounds were now nothing more than light scars. Satisfied, she spent most of her time that day on her computer, trying to collect as much information as she could on the mysterious drone jets. As well as any other "unexplained" incidents that may have happened in the past few days. She was sure the two different situations were not connected, but the timing was horrible. She kept the Astral Stone around her neck the entire day, absorbing it's power to speed her healing as well as to 'feel' for any other magical energies, such as what she had felt when the felynthropes had shown up. The Stone's color was finally back to normal, the sapphire and crimson bands vivid against each other. 

When night finally came and they had all finished their work for the day, they ate dinner in relative silence. They were all three exhausted. The guys physically, Elena mentally and emotionally. 

Elena was actually first to go to bed. Usually she was the last. She lay down on her side, her head resting on her hands and upper arms. She closed her eyes and let out a long, slow breath, her method of relaxing. Releasing tension. Chance had another method. She felt his weight in the bed beside her. Felt his strong hand rub her shoulder and arm ever so gently, lightly tracing the lines of her dragon tattoo. She was still not at full strength, and needed to rest. But something about him had drawn her to him from the beginning. She had always kept her heart shielded. Kept others out. Yet he was different. She _needed _him. 

Elena rolled over onto her back, her eyes meeting his. She smiled to him softly, then he leaned down and gently kissed her. That's all it took. She gave in to him.  
She lost herself in the moment. Shut down her mind. Gave in to her senses. Gave in to the passion. But then something went wrong. 

She didn't feel right. Her fingers and toes burned. It felt as if her claws were growing. Her fangs too. She felt the muscles in her lower arms and legs spasm and burn. A shock of energy ran through her body. Something was very wrong! Elena's eyes opened wide in sudden shock and panic. Her pupils were dilated. 

On the dresser nearby, the crimson bands of the Stone gave a pulsating glow. 

"STOP! 

With a sudden hard shove, she virtually threw him off her, then flipped over onto her hands and knees, breathing hard. 

Chance was taken by complete surprise by her reaction. 

"Elena? Are you okay? I'm... I'm sorry..." He knew he had messed up. She was still needing to recover. 

"No. No it's... it's not your fault. I'm sorry, Chance. It's okay. I'm just... I just still need to rest. I need to finish healing." Her breathing slowed. She had control of herself again. What had happened? She had an idea, and it terrified her. 

The stone's glow faded as she had regained control. Chance had never even noticed the Stone. 

Carefully, Elena laid back down on her side once more. 

Chance moved over, putting a small amount of space between them. He lay on his back, arms behind his head, and exhaled slowly. What had happened? What had he done? Was she mad at him for something? She gave him the answer when she closed the space between them. 

Elena curled up against his side, her head on his shoulder. She was still weak and hurting, but she wasn't mad at him. It wasn't anything he did. 

Chance smiled softly and put his arm around her. They both soon fell asleep.


	5. A Secret Mission

Elena was feeling better now, her strength almost fully returned. She had spent the better part of the day helping Chance and Jake in the garage and with the repairs to the Turbokat. She was also surprised to find that her motorcycle was finished. The guys had competed it for her while she was recuperating. 

Towards late afternoon, she was back working at the computer. The episode the night before had really bothered her. She refused to discuss it, and Chance knew better than to say anything. Jake never had any idea what had happened, but he could feel the slight tension between his two friends. Like Chance, he also knew that it was better not to ask the she-kat anything when she clearly didn't want to talk. 

Elena scanned through the recent crime reports from the hacked Enforcer computer files. While doing so, she thought back to last night. To the strange and painful feeling that her body was changing. That she was loosing control of herself. She glanced down to the scars on her arm, now almost completely faded after only a few short days. She had been bitten, quite badly, by a felynthrope. A 'werekat' as they were also called. She knew that evil magic created the beasts, but that their bites could also cause a victim to become one, if the victim somehow managed to survive, that is. 

She continued to work into the night, then finally found something. Elena turned quickly to her smaller computer and began to type furiously. The lines of codes scrolled quickly over the screen. She had found the strange signal from the microneural transmitter than controlled the drone jets! The signal was extremely feint, but it was there. She worked fast, tracing the signal. After what seemed like hours, but was in fact only a few short minutes, she completed the trace, mere seconds before it vanished again. 

"That's strange... Underground?" 

The she-kat leaned back in her chair, looking at the coordinates on the screen. Something just didn't feel right. She was feeling much better now, and she was restless. She needed to get out. After a few moments, she shut off the screen on the small monitor and got up. She climbed the ladder to the garage above, then continued up to stairs to the apartment, and into the bedroom. 

Jake and Chance both looked at her in surprise when she walked back out of the bedroom in different clothes. They knew about the clothing, but it was the first time they had seen her wear them. Her original clothing that she had worn from the Shadow Relm, loose-fitting and comfortable, had been combined with black biker boots, black gloves that were the same was what the guys wore with their flight suits, and a black leather jacket. 

Chance was quite impressed with her appearance, but also a bit concerned. "Going out?" 

"Yeah, I need to get out for a bit. Thanks for finishing my bike, by the way." She smiled sweetly. There was no way she was going to let them know her true intentions. They'd never let her go alone. Elena smiled faintly to herself. They were almost as bad as Cymric had been about protecting her. 

"Be careful, darlin'." 

"Of course." 

She headed back down the stairs to the garage, then walked the bike outside. She had designed it herself, with a little help from the guys. It suited her perfectly, built for speed and maneuverability, a bit like their cyclotrons. After putting on her silver motorcycle helmet, she revved the engine, kicked up the kickstand, and shot off in a cloud of dust out of the salvage yard and towards the city. It was late when she neared the other side of Megakat City, sometime after 11. The streets were mostly empty of traffic so she gunned the engines, testing out what her bike was capable of. Of course, several times she came upon an Enforcer patrol car. She had opened her mind to sense for them, and slowed down just before approaching, speeding back up again once they were out of sight. 

Eventually she neared the location of where she had traced the strange signal to. She pulled the bike into a dark alley, idling the engine. The joy-ride was over, now it was time to get to work. Elena's mind shifted back to the mentality of the warrior-sorceress that she had been for so many years prior to meeting the SWAT Kats. But now there was one difference, she was combining magic with technology. 

She held her hands out at her sides, palms up. With a sweeping motion, she brought her arms up and about her, as if she were pulling a blanket over her body. The Shadow Cloak wrapped around both her and the bike. The silver motorcycle changed to jet black, as did her helmet. Her clothing melted into a black body suit. 

Revving the engine again, she rode quickly down the alley, coming out into another street at the other end. She had memorized the location of the signal's source, and knew she was very close. Another mile, and she pulled into another alley. Shutting off the bike, Elena maneuvered it behind a dumpster and placed the helmet on the seat. The Shadow Cloak made the bike virtually invisible in the dark shadows. Walking down the alley, the she-kat soon came to a sewer grating. Pulling it open, she jumped agilely down into the darkness below. She didn't have the stone with her, but she felt that she didn't need it. Whatever had made the signal, and the two drone jets it had controlled, was technological, not magical. She had scanned the city for magical energies before she left any ways, and had found none. 

It was pitch black in the sewer, but Elena was used to darkness. She was, after all, the chosen of the Moon Talisman. She had become almost nocturnal in her years as it's keeper. Her delicate whiskers and keen ears helped her find her way in the darkness. She was close. She opened her mind, sensing for signs of life. Her magic had become stronger since becoming the keeper of the Astral Stone. 

Elena suddenly stopped. She felt a presence nearby. Below her. Something... strange. She almost didn't notice it, until she remembered that she was now in the heart of a massive city, not the huge forest she had known so well. Large amounts of plant life didn't belong there. Not where she was. Yet that's what she felt. And something else. Something wrong, twisted. Too late she realized her mistake. A tendril reached up through a grate in the ground and grabbed her ankle. Before she could react, Elena was jerked down into a deeper part of the sewer. 

She spun as soon as she hit the ground, kicking hard at the tendril. It jerked back. There was a soft glow, a lantern. Elena gasped. She was surrounded by hideous beasts. They resembled fungi, but could move around like animals! 

A soft hissing laugh echoed from the shadows in front of her. Elena turned to look at the strange figure that stepped out of the darkness at the edge of the lantern-light. 

"Ssssoooo... _Your _the one who traced my sssssignal? I had expected the ssssssSWAT Katsssss." 

Dr. Viper's glowing eyes glared at the she-kat, a sadistic grin on his scaled face. "But it ssssseems that now you've fallen right into my little trap, my dear. Now, why don't you tell me who you are?" 

Elena narrowed her eyes. "_Your _signal? You're the one who sent those drones against us?" 

"Ussss? Who _are _you?" 

She smiled. Elena had used the Cloak to partially conceal her face. Her eyes were shadowed beneath her dark hair, her red braids and silver earrings also hidden. "I'm called 'Dragonfly'." 

"I sssssssee. And your working with the ssssssSWAT Katsssss?" He knew it was their tracer signal that found him. 

She didn't respond Not a single movement beyond her steady breathing. 

"Well then, if you _are _with them, then you will be the perfect bait to lure them into my trap!" 

Elena glared at the serpentine kat before her. "Exactly who, or _what_, are you?" She was already sure that she knew, but she wanted her suspicions confirmed. 

He laughed wickedly. "You may call me, Dr. Viper!" 

The she-kat glanced around her at the hideous mutations surrounding her. "Alright then." She paused, then looked back to Viper with a wicked grin. "Hey Doc, I gotta riddle for you." 

He raised an eyebrow at this. "Oh really? And what isssss that?" 

"I live beneath the ground, and fall without a sound. Light a torch to see my face, and I vanish without a trace. What am I?" Her eyes had a soft red glow in the feint light. 

"Hmmm..." Viper scratched his chin with a clawed hand. "Only shadowssss and darknessss vanish in the light." 

She narrowed her eyes with a dark smile, her voice a half whisper. "Exactly!" With a single, quick motion, she swept her right arm in front of her, as if pulling a cloak across her body. In fact, that's exactly what she did. The Shadow Cloak wrapped fully around her this time and the she-kat vanished into a living shadow. 

"WHAT?" 

In the next instant, three of the fungi-creatures exploded, as if they had been sliced in half by a sharp blade. 

"No!" Viper retreated back into the shadows. He had never expected something like this. 

Several more of his creations were destroyed by the unseen weapon and it's wielder, including the living vine that had pulled her down there. Then the sound of boots running on concrete could be heard echoing down a black tunnel. He wanted to follow her. Wanted to take vengeance for her destroying his creations, but the strange she-kat was too powerful. He needed help. And he knew exactly where to get it. 

Dr. Viper knew his way down the dark tunnels almost as well as Elena had known every single inch of the forest she used to live in. It didn't take him long to find the hidden lever in the wall of an adjacent tunnel. He pulled the lever and the panel slid open. Once he walked inside, it closed again behind him. Viper's long serpentine tail lashed. He was very irritated. Who was that she-kat? How did she possibly do the things she did? If she really was working with the SWAT Kats, then he had an even bigger problem now. But he wasn't deterred. He was still going to continue with the plan. They wouldn't stop him this time! 

Viper walked over to the large mass of computer systems, and the "thing" that sat next to him. At one time, it was a kat, but now it was hideously mutated. The shredded remains of the kat's clothing had a particular insignia on the front of it, over what used to be the name tag. The name tag was gone, but the insignia still recognizable. It stood for "Pumadyne Inc." 

Viper hissed to his 'creation'. "Activate your remote trackerssss! I want that she-kat sssstopped!" Dissssable her and bring her here! Now!" 

The creature didn't move. He never did. He always just stayed huddled in the corner next to the hardware. He didn't have to move though. All he had to do was think. The wires coming out of the large computer system connected directly into his brain. Following his master's orders, the mutated kat 'thought' his orders into the program. Three dog-like machines suddenly came to life, and took off at a run down the sewers. 

Dr. Viper was a molecular biologist. Computer technology wasn't his strong point. That's why he had to 'recruit' help for this particular project. He hated to rely on machines. Hated them. He preferred his creations. Machines could never imitate the strength and power of living things. But this kat had killed his creations. The machines were expendable. If they failed, his 'assistant' could rebuild them. 

Elena was an excellent tracker, but everything in the sewers looked the same. She had quickly lost her way. All she knew was that she had to get back up. Back to the streets above. Then she could find her bike and get back to the salvage yard. This was something she couldn't do alone. Elena preferred to know her enemy. She knew a little about Dr. Viper, but not nearly as much as the SWAT Kats did. She needed to tell them about what was going on. But first, she had to find her way out of this maze. 

Elena heard a sound behind her. A clicking sound, like steel on stone. Something was following her. And whatever it was, it was moving _fast!_ No, not 'it'. 'Them'. There was more than one. Three by the sound of it. She rotated her left wrist, summoning once again the magic spear. The spear's blade could cut through almost anything organic. But could it cut through metal? Could it cut through these things, which she could only guess were machines, that followed her? Only one way to find out. 

She stopped suddenly and spun around, facing the three sets of glowing 'eyes' that quickly approached her. Optic sensors. They were machines. The glow of their sensors was the only thing she could see, but her shadow cloak prevented them from seeing her. Or did it? 

Too late she realized that they _could _see her. The cloak hid her form, but not her heat. They could see her via infrared! 

"Oh crud..." 

The first one lunged, the other two right behind it. She lept up, easily jumping over the hunting machines. But their reflexes were quick. Just like the drone jets. The three landed and lunged again. Elena side stepped, slashing the first with her spear. The sound of steel on steel echoed through the tunnels. Her spear wasn't strong enough to damage them. Now she knew she was in trouble. 

"I am having a _bad _week!" She wondered what mirror she broken to cause this kind of rotten luck. 

The machines were relentless. One she stood a chance against. Not three. Not without any weapons. She tried to run down the tunnel, but they were too fast. One grabbed her leg, jerking her to the ground. Elena spun around and stabbed her spear right at it's optical sensors. She connected, smashing one of them out. It had no effect. The other two had caught up by then. One grabbed the spear out of her hands, the other clamped down hard on her arm. She felt a sudden sharp pain. It wasn't the steel teeth, but more like a needle. 

"What the Hell...? Oh no." They weren't trying to kill her. They were restraining her. Well, at least that meant she wouldn't be killed, yet. And that meant a chance of escape. She didn't fight the drug, she just let herself slip back into blackness. Again. "A _very_... bad... week..."


	6. A Dark Surprise

Elena had a bad headache when she finally came around. "What the Hell...?" 

"Ah. Glad to sssssee that your finally awake." 

It took her eyes a few moments to focus, but the serpentine form of Dr. Viper soon took shape in front of her. 

"What did you give me?" 

"Oh, itsss quite harmlessssss. Just made you sssssleep for a few hoursss..." 

"Why? Why not just have your 'pets' kill me?" 

"If I wanted my petssss to kill you, I'd have had _my _creationssss do sssso. Assss revenge for what you did! But, no. Bait worksssss better alive!" 

"Bait? Huh. Bait for who? No-one knows where I am. Hell, nobody even knows _who _I am!" 

She tried to move. Her hands were shackled to the wall above her head. Her feet however were still free. 'For a scientist, this guy doesn't seem too bright.' Then she realized something. She looked down at herself, and sighed in relief. She wasn't in shadow form, but she still wore the black body suit. The drug hadn't caused the main spell to break. She still had on the Shadow Cloak. That meant her face was still veiled as well. 

"Perhapssssss not. But sssoon, _ssssomeone _will notice that your misssing." 

She knew he was right. She had to get back by morning, or they would notice. And she knew that all Jake had to do was check her computer and he'd find the coordinates to where she was. Where the _trap _was. She hoped he hadn't done so already. 

Anger and frustration welled up inside of her. She couldn't let that happen. Couldn't let this monster get them. How did she let him get _her_? 

Then she felt it. Felt the 'beast' inside of her welling up again. "Emotion... that's what triggers it!" 

"Huh? Triggersssss what?" 

She didn't answer. She didn't fight it this time. This was her chance. She let the emotion take over. Let the 'beast' take over. 

Viper's eyes went wide as he stared at the she-kat. Her claws began to grow, her fangs to lengthen and sharpen. Her muscles spasmed below her skin. Her slick, coarse fur lengthened, as did her ears. She grew, and the shackles that held her split. She was freed. Dropping down to all fours, the creature that was once the lithe she-kat now stared at Viper. Her eyes had a deep red glow, and she snarled, revealing the long, razor-sharp teeth. 

Dr. Viper now knew what fear really was. He turned to run, and the werekat lunged. Viper was quick though, and he ducked out of the way. The werekat landed several feet from him as he turned toward the hidden panel door. The werekat turned her head and snarled when she had missed, but quickly spotted another target even closer. The mutated scientist from Pumadyne, still huddled in the corner by the machinery. A dark, sadistic grin formed on her face as she stalked forward. The mutation didn't move. Didn't look up. Didn't scream. And a moment later, didn't even live. With a powerful swipe of her claws, the werekat that was once Elena ripped the scientist apart. In mere moments, there was nothing left but a mass of blood and shredded flesh & bone, unrecognizable as ever having been anything kat-like. 

Viper made it to the door and pulled the lever to open it. He hade ran through and the door began to close behind him. Almost away. But a large clawed hand caught the door just before it closed. The door was partially pushed back, and partially smashed through as Elena forced her way through the narrow opening. Her crimson eyes scanned the darkness. The snake was gone. She turned, and ran swiftly on all fours down the tunnel. After several minutes of running, and of fighting the beast within her, Elena skidded to a stop. She lifted her keen nose, catching the scent of the city above her. There was a grating in the ceiling. She reached up, grabbed the bars, and ripped them out from the stone. Climbing up through the opening, she came back to the upper level of the sewers, the dim light of the street lamps above filtering down through occasional storm drains and grates. She ran to the nearest grating, but then stopped. 

She doubled over and screamed out. The sound was loud and piercing, no doubt heard by anyone still awake above, and possibly even waking up those who weren't. It wasn't a kat scream, but a bestial one. She fought. She fought the dark power inside of her, and slowly, finally, began to change back. She fell onto her side, breathing heavily. The Shadow Cloak fell away from her as she did. The spell had caused her felynthrope form to turn black as pitch rather than her normal light-chocolate color. And thankfully, the spell had protected her clothing from the change as well. The less she had to explain, the better. She lay there for several more minutes, then finally, shakily, got to her paws. Climbing the work ladder, she pushed the grating aside. 

It led her up to a warehouse somewhere just outside of downtown. Looking around, she saw a nearby street sign. "Westend pkwy. Great. At least I haven't gone _too _far." She started walking. It was eight blocks to where she had hidden her bike. She wasn't sure exactly how long the drug had knocked her out for, but it must have been at least four hours. Including that time she was unconscious, she spent almost the entire night in the deep sewers. Unfortunately though, she was not the only kat out on the streets so early. 

"Hey there, gorgeous. What are you doing out at this time of morning? Kinda dangerous to be walking these city streets in the dark, isn't it?" 

Elena glanced over at the kat. He was of large build, and dressed like a biker. But there was something else. She didn't like the look of him. She didn't answer, and kept walking. 

Her ears flicked back at the sound of pawsteps behind her. She was being followed. It was the same kat. 'This is just what I don't need.' Placing her hands in her pockets, she ignored him, pretending not to notice. She kept walking, increasing her pace just slightly. She could hear him still behind her. Still gaining ground on her. She knew why she had that bad feeling about him. And she decided to do something about it. Elena broke into a run, and the big kat followed her. She didn't run as fast as she could have, she didn't actually want to loose him. It was her turn to set a trap. 

Quickly, Elena ducked into a nearby alley. The kat was right behind her. "Where do you think you're going, gorgeous?" 

"Nowhere, but I know where _you're _going." She gave a dark grin, then lept forward. The kat was to stunned to react, until Elena's boot hit him square in the chest, throwing him hard backwards into the wall of the alley, knocking the breath out of him. She didn't give him a chance to get up. She knew his victims never had a chance against him. Elena kicked again, this time connecting to the side of his head. The momentum caused the other side of his head to slam into a metal trash can. One more hit, her palm to his nose, and he was out cold. The Enforcers would have a nice surprise when they found this predator tied up and unconscious under a street lamp. 

Elena wasn't far from where she had left her motorcycle. The sun was just starting to rise when she found it. The spell had fallen away, leaving it gleaming silver in the early morning light as she rolled it out of the alley. Putting on her helmet, Elena revved the engine and kicked up the stand. She then tore off down the empty streets, back to the other side of Megakat City, and the salvage yard. 

The sound of the motorcycle outside woke Chance up. "What is doing that for so early?" He groaned and pulled the pillow over his head. The sound shut off. He was back to sleep almost immediately. 

Elena ran inside and down to the hanger. She switched on the smaller monitor and ran her fingers over the keys, doing a quick systems check. She sighed. "Good." No-one had used the computer since she had last night. They guys hadn't found out where she went. 

It was morning now and she was tired. But she could sleep later. The guys, particularly Jake, would be waking up soon. They needed to know what she found. 

Jake and Chance both sat at the table in their small kitchen. Their breakfast was barely touched. Elena stood at the other end of the table, a can of milk in her hands. She had changed back into her jeans and a tank top. 

Chance shook his head. "I can't believe you just went off like that without telling us, though. We know this city, Elena. We could have helped you find that place." 

"I found it just fine, thanks. And one kat could sneak in easier than three." 

"So, what did you find?" Jake took another sip of his milk. 

"It's Dr. Viper." 

They both looked surprised. Chance leaned forward, leaning an arm on the table, "Hold it, Viper's a biologist. He doesn't do robotics." 

"Okay. Well then, how many other green kat-snakes that use mutated plant creatures are there in this city?" 

They looked at each other. Jake nodded. "Okay, that's Viper." 

"So what happened?" 

Elena took another few gulps, wiping her mouth with the back of her wrist. 

"He had set a trap. Apparently it was meant for the two of you. He wasn't expecting me. And he certainly wasn't expecting what I could do. I used my Shadow Cloak and spear, and managed to take down his creations. The snake took off, but he sent three robotic dogs after me. Thankfully, he sent them to capture, not kill." 

"Hang on, he captured you?" Now Chance looked slightly worried. He knew what Viper was capable of. 

"He thought he did. I have to admit I was unprepared for the situation, but he had no clue who he was up against. Unfortunately, he got away. But his help didn't." 

"His help?" 

She nodded. "There was another mutated kat. He looked like he may have once been computer technologist. And there was a patch on what was left of his clothing. Pumadyne. He was the one controlling the drones, and the hunting machines, at Viper's command." 

"But he didn't get away? What did you do with him?" 

"I..." She hesitated. She didn't want them to find out about what had happened. About what she had turned into. About what she now is. "There was an... accident. He's dead, and the computer system destroyed." 

Jake looked at her suspiciously. "What _kind _of accident." 

Elena shook her head. "I'd rather not discuss it." 

"Elena, if you..." 

"I said I'm not going to discuss it!" She clenched her fists. Her hands suddenly started bleeding as she felt the claws lengthen and dig in. She was going to loose it again! No! She had to keep control. Had to calm herself. 

Jake and Chance both were taken by aback by her sudden outburst. This was a side of the she-kat they had never seen. That they didn't even know that she was capable of. 

She stood there, her eyes clenched shut, her fists shaking. Her body was trembling as she fought to control her breathing. Fought to control herself. The blood oozed between her fingers and dripped down onto the floor, forming tiny puddles. 

Chance stood up and took a step towards her, then hesitated. "Elena, please. Calm down." 

She snapped her eyes open and glared at him. "I'm fine! It's just been a stressful night!" 

"What? Hey, I didn't mean..." 

"Just leave me alone for now, Chance." 

Turning quickly on her heel, Elena turned and stomped back downstairs, tossing the can into the trash as she did. She then went down into the hanger below, and back to her computers. 

Jake watched her go, then looked to his friend. 

"What was that all about?" 

"I don't know. She's been acting kinda strange lately." 

"No kidding. Want me to try and talk to her?" 

"Probably not a good idea. I tell ya Jake, when it comes to dealing with the kat-scum in this city, I've never had any problems dealing with it. But this... I just don't understand she-kats." 

Jake gave a small chuckle. "I don't think any guy does." He then headed down the stairs after her. 

Elena's ears flicked backwards as she heard the sound of the hatch opening and someone climbing down the ladder. 

"What's up with you?" 

"Stay out of this, Jake. You have _no _idea what's going on." 

"You're right, I don't. And that's the problem! This isn't like you. You've been acting strangely for the past few days. Ever since.." 

"What? Ever since what, Jake?" She jumped out of the chair and turned to face him, her eyes fierce. "Since the attack? Since I was in the fight of my life against a felynthrope? A werekat? No, I haven't been the same! I was almost killed, and there was nothing I could do about it!" 

"But you stopped it, Elena! You killed it! And you survived!" 

"Yeah, well who says there won't be more! That was just one! With a second downtown to lure you guys away from here! More could be sent! Then what? Then what am I supposed to do, huh?" 

"What's with you? I've never seen you like this?" 

"Never? Oh please. You've only know me, what, nine weeks? Ten? I've lived for almost eighty years, Jake! There's a LOT to me that you haven't seen! That you don't know! That you _can't _know!" 

Her fists were clenched again. More blood dripped. Jake was getting real sick of all the blood lately. Of all the killing. And her sudden burst of temper was really starting to bother him. He was getting fed up with it all. 

"No, we haven't known you for very long. But whatever is going on with you, you need to stop trying to take your anger out on us! Straighten up, Elena! Before something happens that we're all going to end up regretting!" 

She threw up her hands to her head. Her heart pounded. Her head was throbbing. She could feel the blood pulsing, heard it thundering behind her ears. 

"JAKE STOP! You have no idea what you're doing!" 

Her anger was getting out of control. Her frustration. Her fear. Her emotions. She couldn't control them. Couldn't control herself. Couldn't control _it_. 

"What I'M doing? What about what YOUR doing? What about what...?" 

"AAAAHHHHH!" With a loud yell, she suddenly bent over, arms gripping tightly over her gut. 

"ELENA?" 

Jake took several steps back, starring at his friend in shock. 

Chance had heard the scream. He jumped down into the hanger, completely ignoring the ladder. "What was...?" He couldn't say anything else. Only stare at the sight before him. 

Elena was doubled over, her muscles growing, her form changing. Her tail grew thick, her ears long. She unclenched her bloody hands, the muscles so tense that it seemed as if they would burst though her skin. Her claws were growing, long and sharp as daggers. Her entire body grew, ripping out of her clothing. It wasn't Elena anymore. 

Jake backed up several more steps. "She's... she's become one of _them_?" 

Elena, now a large, powerful werekat, lifted her head slowly. A thick black mane of hair hung over her eyes, and down her back. She was breathing hard, her jaws open to expose the long, fierce-looking fangs. Werekats, unless directed by a sorcerer, tend to attack whatever targets are closest to them. Her glowing red eyes starred straight at the smaller ginger-furred kat. 

"Aw crud..." 

"Jake! Run!" 

Chance made a dash for the glavotrix as Elena lunged forward towards Jake. The athletic kat dodged out of her way, but Elena was far more agile than the other werekats had been. She spun in mid-air, one of her powerful hind legs catching Jake in the back. He was thrown forward, three thin rips now in his shirt, and turning red with blood from the cuts on his back underneath. He quickly rolled over and was about to jump back up onto his paws when Elena, with unnatural speed, came forward again and pinned him down with a powerful clawed hand. She snarled, her eyes full of Hellfire. Her other hand was lifted above him, claws extended. One swipe and it would be over.  
The swipe never came, as in the next instant she was thrown off of him and into the far wall by an octopus missile fired from the hand-held missile launcher. Jake jumped to his paws and ran over to where Chance stood. Chance dropped the now empty launcher and tossed Jake the other glavotrix, his own already on. 

Just like the other werekat did in the city, Elena managed to easily break herself free of the missile's grasp. She dropped back down onto all fours, snarling at them. 

Chance and Jake both aimed their glavotrix. She lunged again. 

"Sorry, darlin'." 

Chance fired two rounds of sleep gas mini-missiles while Jake fired the steel mesh net. It was the same method they had used on a giant mutated frog a few years ago, and they hoped it would work on her as well. At first, it appeared to have done so. Elena crashed to the ground and didn't move. At least for a few moments. But then she growled and began to get back up, her eyes still glowing. She shook her head, then grasped the mesh netting in her claws. 

"Oh no..." 

With a quick jerk, she ripped the net apart, then stood up on her hind legs, glaring down at them. 

Chance looked to the smaller kat. "Well, bud. Any ideas?" 

"Yes. Keep her busy." 

"What?" 

Jake turned and ran back up the ladder. 

Chance glanced over his shoulder as his friend left, then looked back to Elena. He opened the glavotrix's defense shield. "Keep her busy. Right." 

Elena lunged again. Chance dodged out of the way, using the shield to block the swipe of her powerful claws. They left a dent in the shield, something he didn't think was even possible. She swiped her claws low, trying to trip him. He managed to jump over the attempt, but again she spun around quickly, and this time succeeded in kicking his legs out from under him as he landed. Chance fell flat on his back. Elena went for him with her powerful jaws, but he shoved the shield up just in time, slamming it hard against her face. She stumbled back, momentarily dazed from the impact. It gave Chance just enough time to get back to his paws and scramble out of the way. 

"Come on, Jake!" 

He held up the shield as she ran for him again. Several swipes of her claws left deep dents in the shield, knocking him back several steps with each blow. With the final swipe she grabbed the edge of the shield, and pulled the glavotrix off his hand, tossing it aside. 

"Crud!" 

She turned and kicked, hitting him hard in the chest and sending him flying back, slamming into the wall. Chance had the air knocked out of him. He coughed, trying to breath. Looking up, he saw Elena only a few feet away, starring at him with those glowing red eyes, snarling. 

"I guess this is it..." 

Suddenly Elena stood up straight and screamed, that same ear-piercing scream they had heard before. Chance rolled out of the way as she fell forward. A bright purple glow surrounded her, and she writhed on the ground, screaming in pain. He turned to look towards the ladder. Jake held the Astral Stone in his hands, a powerful beam of energy and light shooting from it to Elena. 

Finally, the screaming stopped. Elena lay motionless on the ground. Slowly, her form shifted back to normal. Jake dropped the stone and fell to his hands and knees, clearly exhausted. Chance carefully walked over to the she-kat. She was still alive, but unconscious. He pulled his shirt off and put it over her. Her own clothing had been shredded when she changed. 

Jake gripped the railing next to him and carefully pulled himself back up to his paws. 

"How is she?" 

"Alive. Doesn't seem to be hurt." 

"And you?" 

"I'll be fine." 

"You sure?" 

"I'll... be... fine!"


	7. Echos of the Past

Elena woke up slowly. She looked at the window, at the light coming through it. It was late afternoon. Sitting up, she groaned and placed her hands to her head. She had a massive headache. She could remember what had happened. What she'd done. It didn't seem real though. More like a dream. But it wasn't a dream. She had really changed, really attacked her friends. She had really tried to kill them...

When the throbbing in her head subsided a little, she looked around more closely. She was in the bedroom, alone. And somehow she was wearing one of Chance's shirts. That part she didn't remember. But then, her own clothing had been shredded off of her when she had changed, so that did make a little sense.  
Carefully, she got up and got dressed. What day was it? She couldn't remember. It should have been Sunday. That would have meant that the salvage yard and garage were both closed. It would also be why she didn't hear anything downstairs. But where were the guys?

Slowly, she walked towards the door. She paused before opening it. She could hear the TV on. Elena's ears flicked as she listened. It sounded like Scardy Kat cartoons. "Chance..."

Opening the door, she walked out.

Chance was laying on the couch watching cartoons. He jumped at the sound of the door and her paw-steps, reflexively grabbing a laser gun that was on the coffee table beside him. His glavotrix was too badly damaged and in need of repair. He turned around quickly to face her with it aimed.

Elena froze, her hands held up.

He saw it was _her,_ not the werekat she had been. He gave a deep sigh and put the gun back on the coffee table. They kept weapons hidden in different locations in case of emergencies, but almost never right out in the open.

"Sorry."

She understood his reaction. As the werekat, she had no control over her actions. And each time, it became harder and harder to fight off the change. She knew that if this kept up, there would be a time when she couldn't fight it off. When she'd change permanently.

"Chance I... I'm sor..."

"Don't."

She looked up sharply, surprised by the hard tone of his voice. She'd deserved it though.

"Just tell me, 'why'. Why didn't you tell us?"

"I... I couldn't. I didn't want you to worry."

"Didn't want us to 'worry'? Elena, you could have killed us. If I hadn't gotten there in time, you would have torn Jake to pieces!"

She looked down, ashamed, then closed her eyes. A small tear rolled down her cheek. She remembered that all too clearly.

She jumped slightly in surprise as she felt him wrap his strong arms around her. She leaned into him and did something that she had not permitted herself to do for many years. She cried.

"Chance... I'm so sorry!"

"I know it's not your fault. So does Jake. But you should have told us."

"I know. Where... where is Jake?"

"Megakat City Hospital."

"What?"

She looked up, terrified that something horrible had happened to him as a result of her changing.

Chance shook his head calmly.

"He's alright. But the Stone burned into his hands pretty bad when he used it to stop you. He told them it was a mechanical accident working in the garage, and is being treated for the burns. He should be back within the next hour or two."

It _was _her fault. The Stone was meant for her alone, unless she bid it allow someone else to temporarily use it's power. Jake had been allowed to use the Moon Talisman's power by Mau, who was in temporary possession of the talisman at the time. But that was over two months ago, before the talismans merged. The Stone's power was much stronger, and far more dangerous. Perhaps she didn't cause Jake's injuries directly, but it was still her fault.

That night Elena slept only barely. The little sleep she did get was plagued by nightmares. She had fully changed, twice, and the beast within her was gaining in power. She saw herself, in the form of the werekat. The events of the past few days replayed in her mind, every gruesome detail enhanced by the dream. But in her dream, the morning's fight ended differently. Chance didn't fire the missile in time. Her claws came down. Jake ended the same way as the mutated scientist back in the sewers. Her fiery eyes then turned to Chance.

Elena tossed in her sleep. She knew what the dream was doing. She knew what was going to happen. She didn't want to see it. But the dream held her. She couldn't wake up. She was forced to watch, in her mind's eye, as the fight came to it's end. But this time, Jake wasn't there to stop her. She had already killed Jake. She stared straight into Chance's eyes, then brought her claws down. It was over.

The dreams then shifted back into the Shadow Relm. She saw her encampment. It had been destroyed. Kats were butchered like cattle. The livestock was slaughtered. Corpses littered the ground. Ground which was stained in blood, turning the soil and grass a dark shade of crimson. The red sun bathed everything in that same dark red.

She saw everyone that she had ever known and befriended. Everyone she had cared about. Everyone she had ever loved. She saw Jake and Chance. She saw Birman, Cymric and Mau. Her mind took her even further back. She saw her parents, whom she was told had been killed when she was only a kitten. Their bodies were among the rest of the corpses. They were all dead. Ripped apart by her own claws. Their blood stained her hands. Her fur was soaked in their blood. Blood that would never come off. Standing off in the shadows stood a figure clad in dark red robes, his face hidden under his hood. She felt his eyes watching her. He laughed, a hollow, mocking sound.

Elena gasped and sat bolt upright, her eyes wide and wild. She was breathing hard, her heart pounding in her chest. It took several seconds for her to calm down enough to realize where she was. She looked down at her hands. They were normal. The scars of her own claws had faded to almost nothing. She was healing _fast_. And she knew why.

Elena closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. No matter what, she had to make sure she always stayed calm. Almost emotionless. Turning her head, she looked down to her side, and saw Chance asleep in bed next to her. She was thankful that he was a deep sleeper. Trying to wake him sometimes was like trying to wake the dead. She shivered. Bad analogy.

Getting up slowly, her eyes already adjusted to the darkness, she found a pair of jeans and a purple t-shirt. Putting on her blue silk night robe, she took the clothing and went into the bathroom. She desperately needed a shower. It was only a dream, but she still felt as if her fur were stained with blood.

After the shower, she got dressed and walked out into the kitchen, her hair still dripping wet. Opening the fridge, she took out a bottle of water, then closed it again and made her way downstairs. It was still very early, around 3 am. Not unusual for her, she always woke up much earlier than the guys did.

Elena made her way down into the hangar below the garage. She looked over at the Turbokat. The repairs were almost complete. She couldn't sleep. Wouldn't. So she needed to do something. Putting on a pair of heavy work gloves and a safety mask, she picked up the welder and went to work.

It was now Monday morning. Jake and Chance opened the garage at 9 am like always. Elena continued to work on the Turbokat while the guys remained upstairs in the garage above. They weren't very busy today, only three cars and two tows. Even so, Elena finished before they did. Sometime a little after three in the afternoon, she emerged from the hangar.

"Jet's done."

Chance looked up from the car engine he was working on. "You finished the repairs?"

"Yeah." She then went to the cooler for another bottle of water. "Ran a systems check. Everything appears to be working fine, but you may want to run it again just to be sure."

Jake set down his paperwork and stepped out of the office. "I'll run a final check later when we're finished. Thanks Elena."

She just nodded. She still couldn't bring herself to look Jake in the eyes after what happened yesterday. She knew he didn't blame her. Jake wasn't the type to hold any sort of grudge, but she still blamed herself for what happened. Especially when she saw the bandages on his hands. Turning, Elena walked quietly back upstairs.  
Elena sat on the edge of the bed, setting the bottle of water on the dresser next to her.

"Cymric, I could really use your help right now, my friend. You were the only one who always seemed to know what needed to be done. What needed to be said." She spoke mainly to herself. Her best friend of ten years was dead. And it wasn't even in this world, but in the Shadow Relm. She had learned from the Witches how to speak with spirits, but she didn't think that would work here, in this vastly different world. But where Witchcraft couldn't help her, another form of magic could. She form of magic that she didn't chose, but had chosen _her_.

Elena picked up the Astral Stone, holding it gently in her hands. Slowly, she looped the golden chain around her neck. Despite it's size, the stone was very light. She almost couldn't feel it's weight at all. Closing her eyes, she concentrated. The two colored bands of the spiral began to glow softly in unison, creating a soft purple light. She let herself go. Merged her mind with the stone. Let it's power flow through her. She felt every cell of her body energized by the Stone. She searched it. Searched it's vast expanse of energy. Searched for something in the magic that could help her.

Her trance lasted for nearly half an hour, but to her it was both an instant and an eternity. Then something broke it. Another magical energy. Strong... powerful... ancient... close! Elena's eyes opened suddenly just as the alarm sounded. Jumping up, she ran out of the room and down the stairs, reaching the guys just as they hung up the communicator.

"What is it?"

"The Pastmaster's back."

All three ran to the back of the garage and jumped down through the hatch. Jake and Chance ran to their lockers and quickly changed into their flight suits while Elena powered up the pair of supercomputers.

Jake had to partially remove his bandages to put the gloves on. He winced from the pain but did his best not to let the other two notice. They did, especially Elena.

"Looks like you got the jet repaired just in time."

Elena flicked her ears back at the comment. She knew Jake was concerned about her.

He knew she blamed herself, even though he didn't. But for now, he let it go. They had a job to do.

Elena put on her headset. "System online. Be careful guys, this is gonna be bad. I felt an extreme amount of magical energy. Whatever this Pastmaster is up to, it's big."  
"It always is with this guy." Chance was more than ready. He had pent up energy to burn and was ready to kick the Pastmaster's tail back into the Dark Ages, _again_.

The she-kat worked the controls. The Turbokat's systems were already starting up. As soon as the guys jumped into the jet's cockpit she was already lowering the lift, rotating it into position, and closing the jet's canopy by remote. The instant the lift locked in place below, she gave the green light and opened the hangar door. T-Bone pushed the power-lever forward, and the jet shot forward down the runway, and out into the sky.

Elena brought up the optical monitoring system on her larger monitor. Around her neck, the Stone glowed brightly. She had never encountered the Pastmaster, but a sorcerer who could control time bothered her. And the power she felt was intense. And there was something else. Something she had felt before. A dark, twisted presence. She could feel it strongly with the aid of the Stone.

"Hey, guys. I think Dr. Viper's up to something as well."

Razor checked his scanners. There was definitely a strong metaphysical disturbance downtown. No doubt one of the Pastmaster's time vortexes. "What makes you say that?"

"I can feel it. The Stone. His mutations give off a specific aura, and I can feel it."

T-Bone angled the jet in the direction of the disturbance, exactly where Callie had told them it was. "Great. So we got both the Pastmaster and Viper to deal with? Are they working together?"

"I can't tell for certain. But from what I'm feeling from the Stone, I'd have to say 'yes'. Both the magical energy and the unnatural one seem to be coming from the same location. And they're spreading. Fast!"

"She's right!" Razor couldn't believe what he was seeing on his scanners. "T-Bone, we've got a big problem!"


	8. Battle of Magics

The massive wave of water surged through Megakat City. A heavy fog began to fill the air. Huge trees and ferns grew up, smashing their way through the buildings, and anything else in their path. T-Bone and Razor looked down at the scene below them. 

"Not again!" 

Elena was a bit confused as she looked at the images on her screen. "Again? This has happened before?" 

Razor's the one who answered. "Well, yes and no. Not with the Pastmaster. But Dr. Viper tried to turn Megakat City into his own personal 'Megaswamp City' at one point a couple years ago." 

Chance growled under his breath. "Yeah, _not _a pleasant experience." One thing was for sure, he was _not _going to let himself get bitten by any more of Viper's creations. Not after what happened to him last time. 

"Well, how did you stop it last time?" 

Chance kept quiet as he continued to fly towards the source of the disaster. A swirling vortex could be seen in the distance ahead. 

"We had to get a large load of antimutagens from the biochemical labs." 

"Well, I don't think that's going to work this time. According to my scanners, those arn't mutations. But they don't belong here either." 

T-Bone couldn't help a comment on that one. "Ya think?" 

"I meant that they don't belong here, _now_. I've seen plants like that back in the Shadow Relm. But here, they're extinct!" 

T-Bone and Razor both knew what that meant. "Pastmaster!" 

They quickly approached, and weren't the least bit surprised to find the source of the disturbance to be the City Hall clock tower. 

"Figures. That little gnome is up to his same old tricks." 

Razor checked his screen. "Oh yeah, Hot Shot? Take a closer look!" 

T-Bone angled the jet and banked right around the tower. He could plainly see the Pastmaster. He had apparently acquired a new spell book and was using it to turn Megakat City into a prehistoric swamp. But standing next to him, was Dr. Viper! 

"Well this just keeps getting better and better." 

The jet made a large loop around the building. Razor armed several missiles and was lining up the targeting scope. That's when the pterasaurs dropped down out of the vortex. 

T-Bone watched them swarming out. "Aw crud! These guys again? You'd think that after living for eight hundred years, he could come up with something a bit more original." 

Elena watched the creatures on her screen. "Well, they don't look nearly as tough as wyverns." 

"No, but there's a lot more of them!" 

She watched as more and more of the flying reptiles, nearly three dozen of them, swarmed around the Turbokat. 

"Great..." 

Razor already had the three Scramblers loaded and ready, might as well use them. "Targets locked... Deploy!" 

The missiles fired, and all three hit their marks. The flying beasts screamed, and fell from the sky. 

"Good shot, buddy. Three down... thirty to go." 

Elena worked on the small computer, and shook her head at the results the codes were showing her. 

"There's a lot more creatures than those." 

"Huh? How _many _more?" 

"That waster's brackish. And there's creatures in it. The spell has to be broken before it's complete. Are there any more Scramblers?" 

Razor checked. "I've got one left." 

"Save it! That's what you need to disrupt the spell!" 

The Turbokat angled around again, but several of the giant creatures flew at the jet, biting and clawing at it's shield panels. 

"These things arn't gonna let me get anywhere near that tower!" 

"You've got to find a way to. And no matter what, stay well away from the water!" 

"No problem there..." 

"There should be a way too..." For a moment, it sounded as if the com went dead. 

"Elena?" There was a moment of silence, then they heard what sounded like a groan of pain. "Elena?" 

"I'm here. But I have to shut off." 

"What's wrong?" 

"I'm..." She hissed in pain. "I'm changing again! I've got to find a way to stop this! I'm going to... AGH!" 

"ELENA!" 

"I'm using the Stone! I've got to go back to the Shadow Relm! There's got to be a way to stop this! I'm sorry..." 

There was a hissing of static, then the com shut off. 

"She went back?" 

"Calm down, T-Bone. If there's any chance for a cure to this, it's gotta be there. She did say that the first two came from there." 

"Yeah, but, what if..." 

"She can handle herself! You know that! She stands a far better chance there than she does here. C'mon. She'll be back. I _know _she will!" 

"You're right." He narrowed his eyes. "And we've got a job to do." He pushed the lever forward, and the power to the engines increased. 

By then nearly a dozen Enforcer choppers showed up and began engaging the pterasaurs. T-Bone switched the radio channel over. 

"About time you showed up, Commander. Had to stop for a refill from the nearby donut shop?" 

There was a pause, they swear they heard a soft growl, then Feral's voice yelled at them over the radio. "Back off, SWAT Kats! The Enforcers will handle this!" 

"Yeah, sure. I'd say you're a little outnumbered there, Feral!" 

Almost as if to prove the point, two of the pterasaurs attacked the chopper nearest to Feral's. The tail rotor was completely torn off and the chopper fell to the water far below. Sure enough, a large serpentine head came out of the water and grabbed the pilot before he even had a chance to escape. 

"You were saying?" 

"Fine! But you stay out of our way!" 

"Okay, how 'bout this. You keep these overgrown parakeets busy, and we'll take out the Pastmaster." 

"Don't you dare fire on the City Hall clock tower!" 

"You got any better ideas?" 

Silence. 

"I didn't think so." He shut off the radio before Feral could find something else to yell about. 

The Turbokat once again turned, heading straight for the clock tower. Two more pterasaurs flew at them. They never got close enough to attack, a pair of octopus missiles knocking them straight out of the air as the jet flew past. 

"Lining up Scrambler missile. Get me as close as you can, pal." 

"You got it." 

The vortex continued to swirl. Below them, more and more of the city began to change into swamp. Razor gained a radar lock, but before he could fire, his hand jerked. He'd tried to ignore the pain of his burns, but without the bandages, they were getting rubbed raw under his gloves. Taking a breath, he again tried to push the pain to the back of his mind. "Fire!" 

The missile launched, but never hit it's target. A massive red-scaled beast flew rapidly out of the portal, straight down. It snatched the missile in it's powerful jaws, crunching it like an aluminum can. 

"A dragon?" 

The missile's strong electric shock clearly hurt the beast, but not enough to inhibit it's flying ability. It threw the missile away, then roared and turned towards the Turbokat, which had changed course away from it. 

"Great! Now what?" 

"I don't know, but we'd better think of something fast! Over half of the Enforcer choppers are down!" 

T-Bone looked to where the Enforcers were fighting the pterasaurs. There were only four left. Most of the pterasaurs were now heading back towards them.  
A sudden wind picked up, fierce and strong. In the sky above, the clouds swirled. A new vortex opened. 

Viper looked over to the Pastmaster. "Now what are you sssssummoning?" 

"That's not mine!" 

A loud, fearsome roar cut through the air, as a great winged beast flew through the portal. 

The two villains stared at the creature. Pastmaster knew instantly what it was. Another dragon! But unlike any he had seen before. 

The beast was long and sleek, it's leathery wings nearly as wide as it's body was long. It's powerfully muscled tail made up over half of it's total length. It's scales shimmered in the evening light as if they were made of pure sapphires, with stripes of dark red over them like those of a tiger. It's eyes were green as emeralds. 

The dragon flew straight towards them! 

Pastmaster held up his watch, a blast of powerful energy, like lightning, shot out straight towards the beast. 

An aura of silvery-blue light enveloped the dragon as the blast hit it. Bolts of white-hot energy danced over the aura along the dragon's total length, then fizzled out. It was unharmed, and still coming. 

Viper turned and ran. He wasn't about to tackle a dragon! This is what he gets for relying on others! First machines, now magic! He would stick to his own mutations from now on! The snake never looked back. 

The striped dragon opened it's powerful jaws and bolts of white-hot electricity danced between razor-sharp fangs. The energy built, cumulating in the back of the dragon's maw. It opened it's jaws wider. The light from the energy ball caused it's entire mouth to glow. Then the ball exploded outward, a powerful lightning blast shooting straight at the Pastmaster. 

"NOOOO!" The blast hit, exploding the clock tower. The Pastmaster jumped just in time. One of his pterasaurs flew down and the Pastmaster landed on it's back.  
The dragon roared in defiance and angled it's wings, diving down after the small skeletal kat. 

"What was that?" Both the SWAT Kats yelled out at the same time. Looking out their left side, they saw that the clock tower had exploded, and they saw the new dragon giving chase. 

Razor stared at the beast. "Where did _that _one come from?" 

"Wherever it came from, it looks like it's on our side!" 

The red dragon broke off it's chase of them and turned towards the new threat. 

"T-Bone, the colors! Sapphire blue mixed with dark red. You don't think that...?" 

"That's _exactly _what I'm thinking!" He dove the jet, down towards the water. 

"What are you doing? She said to stay away from the water!" 

"Right. Because of those things down there. But let's see exactly how fast they are!" 

The pterasaurs followed them down. The jet shot down low over the water, kicking up a high wake of water. It twisted and turned in a zig-zag pattern down the narrow space between the buildings. Several large serpentine heads reared up and snapped, but none was quick enough to catch the fiercely maneuvering jet. The pterasaurs, however, weren't so lucky. Many of them were snagged out of the air by the creatures. 

He pulled the jet up, back well away from the water and the creatures beneath. He then turned, back towards the destroyed clock tower, and the fleeing Pastmaster.  
The striped dragon glanced back behind it. Her green eyes saw the large red dragon behind her, and the black jet coming up fast behind it. The smaller pterosaur was fast, and she knew the red dragon would catch her before she caught it. But she also knew that the jet would be going for the Pastmaster. The dragon flared her massive wings and arched her entire body, her nose lining up parallel with the end of her tail for the briefest moment as she twisted and looped in a rapid u-turn. 

The red dragon didn't have enough time to react as the two beasts slammed into each other in mid air, biting and clawing, wings beating fiercely to keep them both aloft. The red dragon was heavier and stronger, but the striped dragon's claws and fangs were sharper, her movements quicker. And there was an aura protecting her. Most of the big red's attacks couldn't pierce the aura. Those that did left only light wounds in the sapphire hide. With a powerful blast of fire, more to disorient it's foe than damage her, the red broke away. The striped dragon gave chase. 

The Turbokat flew rapidly past the battling dragons. T-Bone aimed the jet towards the fleeing pterosaur and the Pastmaster. Razor was already targeting. 

"Now to bring that bird down! Blowtorch missiles locked... loaded... Deployed!" 

The two missiles streaked straight towards the beast. It dove and the first missed, but the second hit. The pterosaur exploded. The could hear the Pastmaster screaming. 

"Alright! Prehistoric fried chicken!" 

Razor shook his head. He had heard _that _line before. 

"Now for the dragon." The jet turned back towards the pair of flying beasts. 

The striped dragon had the red one on the run. The red dove. She tucked her wings tight against her body and followed after it. This was her chance. If she could just prevent it from ever pulling back up. The red turned and began to zig-zag between the tall buildings. The striped had to keep her large wings partially tucked and her body angled, but she was still very quick and maneuverable. She beat her wings hard at every chance and easily kept up with her target. Opening her jaws, another ball of energy began to build in her throat. 

The red pulled up sharply, beating it's wings hard to gain altitude. It never saw the black jet's approach, or the missile it fired, until it was too late. The tarpedo hit the dragon full on and exploded. A black mass of sticky tar covered the dragon so that it couldn't properly use it's wings. It began to fall, just as the energy blast hit it. The dragon screamed, then exploded in a ball of blue-white energy. 

The striped dragon turned sharply to avoid the explosion, as did the Turbokat. Extending her large wings, the dragon flew up and leveled out with the jet. Her emerald eyes looked at the two kats inside the cockpit. Even in the form of a large dragon, they both knew those eyes. 

Elena nodded to them, then spread her wings wide and the beat them down hard, gaining in altitude again. She turned, and flew directly towards the vortex. There was no sign of the Pastmaster, but the portal was still open. She could feel that the spell was almost complete. She had to reverse it! Now! Or it would be too late 

Elena's form began to glow with a bright energy. She opened her jaws once more, and once more the energy ball began to build. She flew straight towards the portal. The strong swirling wind buffeted her, but she was a trained pilot. She knew how to fly. How to keep steady in a strong wind. The entire battle had taken most of the late afternoon. The sun was just setting behind the dark clouds. Once the power had built to it's apex, she released it. The strong blast of magical energy flew from her dragon form towards the portal. The light from the spell illuminated the sky. The sky churned, and an unnatural darkness descended over Megakat City A soft red glow covered everything that had been summoned by the spell. One by one, the prehistoric plants and animals began to vanish, the water to recede. The Pastmaster's spell was broken, it's effects reversing. 

After several minutes, the darkness lifted. The sky shown purple in the fading light of evening. Everything was back as it was, except for the City Hall clock tower, which was still destroyed from Elena's initial attack. She felt out with her magic. There was no sign of the Pastmaster. Viper too, had disappeared. No doubt he had slithered away back into the sewers. But she felt something else. 

In the back of her mind, she heard a voice. She saw the source of the voice in her mind's eye. A shadowed, red-robed figure spoke to her with his magic.  
"You've gotten stronger. But this isn't over. Your time will come, Elena, keeper of the Stone. And I will have my vengeance!" 

She roared out in defiance of the voice. Her form then shimmered. She brought her wings about her, her body doubling over in mid-air. The Cloak wrapped about her massive form, turning her into a living shadow that disappeared into the darkening night. 

"That's our cue." T-Bone watched the now familiar spell, then turned the jet back towards home.


	9. A New Power Emerges

The hangar door opened. A massive shadow angled down and into the tunnel mere moments before the Turbokat.

T-Bone landed the jet smoothly. Once the lift was up and locked, he and Razor jumped out and looked around. They saw Elena, sitting against the far wall near the ladder leading up to the garage above. She wore a flowing dark blue skirt down to her ankles, and a matching top, her mid-section exposed. The clothing was clearly from the Shadow Relm, not their own world. She had her arms resting on her knees, her head down. T-Bone ran over to her, but stopped a few feet away.

"Elena? Are you alright?"

Razor followed right behind him. The both watched the she-kat carefully.

Elena slowly raised her head and gave a soft, half-hearted smile.

"I'm fine. That spell just took a LOT out of me. I still haven't fully learned to use the Stone's power."

"That... that was you, right? The dragon?"

She nodded. "Yes. I merged with the Stone, and became what you saw. Mau called it the Astral Dragon. I'm the third ever to have mastered the form."

T-Bone held out a hand to help her up, which she accepted. She was very weak, but otherwise okay. The wounds she had sustained from the battle with the Pastmaster's red dragon were already fully healed.

Razor looked her over. "Well, I'm glad to see you're doing better. And I'm really surprised it didn't take that long."

"Didn't take that _long_?" Leaning on T-Bone for support, she looked at her friend. "Maybe _here _it didn't, but I was gone for almost four months!"

Neither one could believe it. "Four months?"

"Yes, which was a surprisingly short time all things considered."

Razor seemed hopeful, but something in her tone worried him. "So, did you find the cure?"

"Well, no. There isn't one."

T-Bone's heart sank.

"But, I did learn how to _control _it. I can change at will, and only when I wish it. I can also control myself, even as a werekat." She smiled. "Which means no more attacking whoever's nearby."

"Well, that's good news." Razor still wasn't sure he liked the idea of her being able to change into a werekat whenever she wished. Not after what happened the last time she did it.

Elena looked to her friend and gave a soft smile. "And there's something else I learned. Jake, give me your hands."

He hesitated, but he trusted her. He slowly pulled off his gloves, then held his hands out in front of him. Carefully, Elena removed the remainder of the bandages, revealing the raw and bloody burns on his palms.

"The Stone's power caused these wounds. It's power can also remove them."

Gently, she placed her hands, palms down, on top of his. Razor winced from the pain, but didn't move. The stone began to glow a soft blue. The glow moved to Elena's hands. Razor felt a soft tingling in his hands. They felt warm, but not painful. After a moment, she pulled her hands back.

Razor and T-Bone stared. The wounds were gone. Not even scars to show where they'd been.

An hour later, the three were upstairs in the apartment. They sat on the couch, Elena in the middle, watching Ann Gorra's news report. As usual, Feral was complaining about how the SWAT Kats, even though they still managed to once again save the city, caused damage to city property. Of course, Ann made a comment about how it wasn't their missile, but the strange dragon that destroyed the clock tower.

Elena stifled a small laugh. "Oops."

Chance put his arm around her shoulder. "So, now you can turn into a bird, a werekat, _and _a dragon?"

"The Astral Dragon was probably a one time thing. I don't know if I'll ever be able to merge myself strongly enough with the Stone to do it again. My predecessors never did."

Jake turned down the volume on the tv. "How is it that you were gone for four months? Here it was only about an hour?"

She shrugged. "Time works differently in the Shadow Relm. Remember when we returned here, you said that it was not even a half an hour after you left? And you were there for almost a full month. I'm not sure if it's time itself, or something to do with the portal. Because in the Shadow Relm, about 13 years had passed since we left."  
"Thirteen years? What happened in that time?"

"I only saw Mau. He's still the High Wizard of the Moon. His powers are even greater than they were before. It was with his help that I learned to control my being a werekat, and to increase my use of the Stone's power."

Chance could hear in her voice that there was something else she wasn't saying. "Any news of Birman?" He remembered that Birman was like a brother to her. He worried that something had happened to the General.

"Mau told me that Birman was doing fine. His village is rebuilt, and he has a family now."

So that wasn't it. But what was?

"What else is there, then? Something's still bothering you."

Jake had noticed it too. The look in her eyes had betrayed her.

"It's just... For the past few years, he's felt a dark power stirring. He could never pinpoint it, but it was there. I felt it too while I was there. It's the same power I felt when the two werekats appeared here. It's the source."

"Shade Kat?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. I does feel a bit like his power, but it also doesn't. It's an ancient power. Strong. Evil."

Now Chance was starting to get concerned. This 'power' has already tried to kill Elena at least once by sending the werekats after her. Now that she's much stronger, would it try again? With something worse?

"And there's something else. Mau said that whatever this power is, it seems to have a keen knowledge of the Stone. It can locate anyone who's used the Stone, or one of the two Talismans, and attack them mentally. Since it's mainly only sorcerers that have ever used them, that's not much of a problem. With one exception."

She turned her eyes to Jake. The color virtually drained from his face. He knew very little about magic, and was not even close to being considered any form of mage. Yet he had used both the Moon Talisman and the Astral Stone. That meant he could potentially become a target for whoever, or whatever, this power was.

Later that evening, Chance sat on the edge of the bed, head in his hands. He was worried. He loved Elena. And he and Jake were as close as brothers. They were his family. He'd give his life to protect either one of them. And now there was something else out there, something powerful, that could potentially target both of them with magic. It had already nearly killed Elena by sending the werekats for her. Elena, with her magic and knowledge of the beasts, had survived. Only barely. Only with the power of the Stone, and even then only because he and Jake had gotten there in time and got it to her. But if another werekat were sent, this one for Jake, alone, his brother wouldn't stand a chance. Not on his own. And Elena's power was much stronger now. That meant that this thing could possibly send something much stronger the next time.

"Chance?"

Chance looked up to see Elena standing near the door of the bedroom. He never even heard her enter, or close the door behind her. She stood wearing her blue silk night robe, her hair still wet from the shower. He could tell by the way that the robe caressed her body, that there was nothing underneath. Chance smiled and stood up, walking over to her. He put his arms around her and lightly traced his fingers down her spine. She leaned into him and kissed him deeply.

"I love you, Chance."

"I love you too, and I always will. That's a promise."

He gently picked her up and carried her over to the bed. He knew what she wanted, and there was certainly no argument from him.

[This is the end of our story for now. Look for the third installment of the Shadows Trilogy, "Shades of Shadow", coming soon!]

[Shades of Shadow preview: A powerful sorcerer from Elena's past returns to seek revenge on the she-kat, with the SWAT Kats getting caught in the magical cross-fire. As Elena learns to harness the power of the Astral Stone, and the consequences thereof, the dark sorcerer captures someone very close to her in and attempt to lure her out. She must return to the Shadow Relm, and with the help of the High Wizard Mau, Elena and the SWAT Kats must soon prepare for the greatest challenge of their lives.]


End file.
